UNT group explores human sexuality with porn and chicken

by Christina Mylinski of North Texas Daily

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The club was asked to stop its monthly meetings on campus last semester because they violated university policy.

The aroma of fried chicken wafts throughout an isolated room. Inside, people dressed in their Sunday’s best are gathered around a television to explore the artistic nature of sex.

The UNT Porn and Chicken club, founded in September 2008, is a group of students who have joined together to celebrate human sexuality through pornographic film while they eat fried chicken, which provides a way to discuss such a controversial topic.

“It was very nice to get things out in the open, because sex is treated like a foreign subject, so it was a therapeutic way of expressing yourself,” said Ray Batts, founder of UNT Porn and Chicken.

The club was asked to stop its monthly meetings on campus last semester because they violated university policy.

Meetings were in Kerr Hall in the eighth floor activities room. When a growing number of students began showing up, a resident assistant found out what was going on behind the locked doors.

The RA was uncertain if the group was breaking any rules and checked with higher officials who informed the group that it was not allowed to hold meetings anymore.

“We got in trouble because it was a university room, and it was school sanctioned,” said Warren Carlson, a visual arts sophomore.

According to the Code of Conduct for Student Center of Rights and Responsibilities, section B under Acts Affecting the University Community, a club can be issued a warning of complaint if they are engaging in disorderly or obscene conduct without effective consent.

“I can understand why the university doesn’t want a club involving porn on campus, because they probably didn’t understand the club’s purpose, and often times when people don’t understand things, they’re prompted to shut it down,” said Erin Kane, an English language sophomore.

At its three-hour meetings, the organization hosts a potluck where members can bring a preferred medium for the group to discuss and critique.

“It was nice to see what they were into because not everyone wants to talk about that, and it showed their preferred taste and brought us closer together,” Carlson said.

The club has strict policies — each member must be at least 18 years old, and no nudity or touching is allowed.

A porn and chicken club began in 2000 at Yale University when a group of students produced a pornographic film. The club never released the tape but sold its story of immediate fame to Comedy Central who released a documentary called Porn and Chicken.

Since then, college students have established their own versions of the club, according to the organization’s website.

UNT Porn and Chicken is active but does not advertise on campus. Meetings are conducted off campus with a smaller number of attendees.

“If you don’t talk about it then it becomes a taboo, and when people have questions about things like that, no one has anywhere to go to talk about it, so I’m glad that this is an outlet for people,” Kane said.

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